If you have tight hips or low back pain (which are usually related), then you will love this hip opening yoga sequence. 

Not only will you get the relief you need, but the addition of Yin Yoga postures can help release stuck emotions that can be causing these physical imbalances in the first place.  This is because we focus on mobilizing the energy in the Liver and Gallbladder meridians that run through the inner and outer legs, respectively.

You can learn more about how to balance liver and gallbladder energy in Spring Health Tips from Traditional Chinese Medicine . These organs and channels tend to become imbalanced in Spring, resulting in a condition we call Liver Qi Stagnation.  It results in issues like:

• eye strain
• headaches
• angry outbursts
• tight hips & groin
• menstrual irregularities
• PMS
• and much more…

Of course some people just have a this type of constitution and can be prone to these issues at any time.  This makes this Yin Yoga Liver and Gallbladder yoga practice even more important so that you can do it regularly to find balance in your life.

Before you begin, make sure you have:

• a blanket or cushion to prop up the hips
• 1-2 blocks 

You may  also want to download my Stress-Relieving acupressure guide.  You can do these acupressure points while you hold some of the Yin Yoga shapes!  This acupressure sequence will make the yoga practice even more effective and can help you sleep at night.  You’ll love it!

Hip Opening Yoga Practice Video

I hope you enjoyed this hip opening yoga practice! If you were experiencing issues with Liver Qi Stagnation before you began, did they resolve by the end? Let us know in the comments!

Do you ever feel like you’re running on auto-pilot? Do you feel like life just happens to you? Or do you make conscious choices to shape your life?This meditation, mindfulness of intentions, can give you more control in your life. 

We’ve been doing a 5-part mindfulness meditation series, and with the last four (Mindfulness of Breath, Body Awareness, Emotions, and Thoughts), we’ve been exploring different anchors of awareness as techniques to keep the mind in the present moment.  However, when we focus on mindfulness of intentions, we’re focusing on WHY we are practicing meditation, not HOW.

Our success in experiencing the benefits of meditation hinges largely on how personal, how deep, and how meaningful our intention is.  Your positive experience will then feed you commitment to continuing to meditate.

For example, if your intention to meditate is just to get a good grade on a test, once the test is over, you may quickly drop the practice.  But if you’re meditating to open your mind to all possibilities and absorb new information readily so your school, work, or home life can thrive, do you see how this is much grander?  Once you start to see positive changes, meditation will easily become a stronger part of your life.

We must also remember that intentions are seeds of potential that you will grow as you are mindful of them.  So intentions must be positive, kind, and for the benefit of all involved. 

Here’s another example: an intention to meditate in order to be better or smarter than someone else is not growing intelligence, it’s growing competition and comparison. You’ll need to rephrase it so it’s clear that you wish to benefit, but without harming anyone else with animosity.

I make intentions for my yoga & meditation practices, for the yoga classes I teach, for my acupuncture sessions with clients, for my doTERRA business activities, and for my social media posts.  I try to stay mindful of my intentions in every conversation I have. It helps me to be more diplomatic with relationships. It helps me anticipate the results of my actions – good and bad.

If it sounds like this would bring more balance to your life, then you’ll love this meditation! 

Guided Meditation: Mindfulness of Intentions 

Determining your Intention

Prepare your meditation space so it’s quiet and comfortable. In the video I used the doTERRA Melissa, Litsea, and Blue Tansy essential oil blends on my wrists and heart space. Emotionally, these oils help with manifesting light and positivity which is an intention I’m focusing on right now.

Come into a seated position on the floor or in a chair. If you’re on the floor, sitting on a cushion will elevate your hips and help your legs relax in the hip joints. Let your hands rest on your knees or thighs.

Before we start the formal meditation, let’s take some time to set an intention.

Breathe slow, even, and deep to bring the mind down into the body. Let your awareness rest at the heart space. Notice what you’re feeling.

If you have an intention, you can say it to yourself now. If you don’t have an intention, stay connected with the feelings you have in your hear and ask yourself why you’re meditating. Simply keep asking until something bubbles up to the surface.

If nothing comes up, you might want to use a standard bodhisattva intention that goes something like this (the following is a combination of what I’ve learned from Sarah Powers and Stephen Batchelor):

I vow to awaken – in body, heart, and mind – for the benefit of all beings. I appreciate it’s immeasurable value in how I live my life and know that it’s possible, in this moment, regardless of conditions.

Mindfulness Meditation Instructions

It’s your choice now, where you would like to anchor your attention. It can be on the breath, on physical sensation, on emotions, or thoughts as they surface. You can even focus on sound, which we haven’t talked about yet.

Remember that these anchors are simply features of the present moment. Once you have some experience, you can even let your mind float from anchor to anchor, whatever is grabbing your attention with each passing breath.

There is a key difference with mindfulness of intentions though. When you inevitably become distracted, instead of simply returning back to your anchor, remind yourself of your intention. Remember why you’re doing this and why it’s so important. Then go ahead and return to your anchor. Chances are, your awareness will be stronger now.

After 10 minutes or longer, when you’re ready to come out, return to your deep, even breathing. Open up all the sense organs to notice what you’re feeling on the skin, smelling, tasting, and hearing. Then slowly open your eyes.

Before you get up, you may wish to make an intention for the rest of the day. It’s my hope that setting intentions will become a natural part of every activity. Living intentionally can give you a greater sense of control and responsibility for every choice you make. I know for me, it certainly makes life for special and enjoyable!

How did it feel to focus on intentions during your meditation? If you have any insight that you’d like to share, I’d love to hear about it in the comments!

Please share this meditation with a friend, since there are many who can use this support now! Thank you & well wishes to you…

In this last month we’ve been exploring the different anchors of awareness in mindfulness meditation. Today we’ll be doing the 4th guided meditation in this 5-part series, this time focused on mindfulness of thoughts. 

The goal of meditation is always to live in the present moment, regardless of the circumstances in your life. It is an extremely helpful tool when we’re challenged physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.

I want to clarify this upfront because many people incorrectly believe that meditation is about emptying the mind. They know that their mind never stops and doesn’t see that this is possible. As a result, they don’t even try, or they give up to soon.

With mindfulness of thoughts, we’ll be watching our ideas, thoughts, and fantasies as they enter the mind but then stay unattached as we watch them leave. It is a more advanced practice, so you may want to start with with one of our previous meditations if you are a beginner meditator: Mindfulness of Breath, Body Awareness, or Emotions.

Guided Meditation: Mindfulness of Thoughts Instruction

Meditation Instruction: Using Your Thoughts as an Anchor

Prepare your meditation space so it’s quiet and comfortable. In the video I used the doTERRA InTune essential oil blend on the back of my neck and soles of my feet to help me feel grounded and focus the mind. You can use essential oils or any other tools that will help support your practice.

Come into a seated position on the floor or in a chair. If you’re on the floor, sitting on a cushion will elevate your hips and help your legs relax in the hip joints. Let your hands rest on your knees or thighs. Set a timer for at least 10 minutes and close your eyes.

Take several slow deeps breaths. You may want to make each part of the breath 4-5 seconds in length, making sure the inhalation and exhalation are equal. This is called “sama vrtti”, or equal fluctuation, which slows the mind down, slowing the transitions from thought to thought.

Now let the breath move naturally. Let the mind shift from watching the breath to watching and feeling the body breathing. You can then notice any emotions related to the body and breath. Finally, let your mind rest on thoughts.

This is a profound experience where the mind watches the mind. We are tapping into a higher state of consciousness and awareness.

Notice where the mind is and what thought is in the foreground of your experience. As you notice it, you can name it “thinking”, or “planning”, or “remembering”, or whatever the mind is doing.

While you don’t want to get caught up in the thought, it is interesting to notice if your mind consistently moves in the same direction, caught in the past or in the future.

After the thought is acknowledged, let it go. You may wish to visualize the mind as a wide open sky and you can place the thought in a cloud to let it float on by.

It is inevitable that you’ll find yourself caught up in your thoughts. When this happens, simply focus your mind on the breath, then the body, then on your feelings, and back to the mind watching the mind.

Eventually, you’ll experience less time managing your thoughts and more time in the sweet spaces in between.

When you’re ready to end your meditation, do so gradually by opening up all the senses except for your sight. Find a balance of internal and external awareness. Then open your eyes.

How did it feel to focus on thoughts during your meditation? Did you notice a pattern in your mental habits? How are you feeling now? Please let me know in the comments!

Committing to meditation for just 10 minutes a day is such a simple, yet huge endeavor that can bring more peace into your life.

Please share this meditation with a friend, since there are many who can use this support now! Thank you & well wishes to you…

Welcome to the third of our 5-part series on mindfulness meditation.  This time, we’re focusing on mindfulness of emotions.  Not only will you be able to tame the fluctuations of the mind to experience more clarity, but will also be able to process intense emotions.

As I write, we’ve been sheltering-in-place to slow the spread of Covid-19 for over a month now.  Emotions are intense, but it’s not just because people are afraid of getting the disease.  We are now dealing with the emotional and mental repercussions of being isolated from others, dealing with financial hardships, and for many, a loss of purpose.

How is Meditation Good for Emotional Health?

It’s important to recognize that no emotion is innately bad!  We humans are emotional beings and our capacity to feel is what makes life so deep and meaningful.  So meditation is not meant to remove any emotion from our lives.

However, where we get stuck is when we become reactive, impulsive, or defensive because of being caught up in our emotions.  This is more harmful to us and our relationships than the emotion alone. 

Meditation give you a wider perspective where you can see your emotions clearly.  You’re able to pause and give intense emotions space.  Quite often they diffuse into something less intense when you can see them alone, separate from the story that you feel caused them.  Meditation helps you to live with all emotions regardless of whether you like them or not.

Guided Meditation: Mindfulness of Emotions Instruction

Meditation Preparation

Is this your first time with mindfulness meditation? You may want to look back on our last two sessions Mindfulness of Breathing and Mindfulness of the Body for helpful tips on what to expect.

Find a place where you won’t be disturbed. Create the ambiance for your practice that will promote relaxation and strengthen your resolve to meditate.

For this mindfulness of emotions meditation, I used the doTERRA Adaptiv Calming blend. It helps to bring you into a relaxed, parasympathetic state of being. It keeps the heart open, allowing for more space to feel.

Meditation Instruction: Using the Emotions as an Anchor

Come to sit in a comfortable position on the floor or in a chair. Let your hands rest on your knees or thighs with the palms turned up or down. Set a timer for at least 10 minutes and close your eyes.

There’s always an overlap of anchors in mindfulness meditation. First, bring your awareness to the breath, letting the mind settle as it watches the smooth steady flow.

Next, feel the breath deep in the body. Allow your mind to settle down with the breath. Feel your whole body breathing. Expand and open with each inhalation. Release tension with each exhalation.

Finally, bring your awareness to your physical heart space. Which emotion is most on the surface here? Can you name it? See if you can sit with this raw emotion with out getting into the story of why you feel this way.

Do you notice anything else as you’re feeling this way? How is your body responding to this emotion? Are you tense? Is your breath constrictedIs your stomach queasy? Do you feel palpitations as your heart beats faster? Again, just stay with these raw feelings and do not react by turning your attention away.

Be as present and as accepting with these emotions as a loving, peaceful parent would be with a child who’s having a meltdown. (Seriously, this perspective really works to create more self acceptance and compassion).

If you do notice that your mind has drifted, go all the way back to feeling the breath moving deep in the body. Rest here for a moment, and then slowly return to the heart space.

Repeat this over and over for the amount of time you’ve committed to being here. When you’re ready to come back, return to deep breathing. Allow the sense organs to slowly open to what’s happening around you.

Before you get up, take note of how you’re feeling now vs. how you were feeling when you began. Any change is progress! Remember this to help you commit to continuing for your personal benefit and those you’re in relationship with.

How did you feel after doing this meditation? Did you notice a shift in your mood? I’m eager to hear about it in the comment below!

Please share this meditation with a friend, since there are many who can use emotional support right now! Thank you for considering it! Well wishes…

When you’re ready, please try our next meditation in this series, Mindfulness of Thoughts.

The Coronavirus Pandemic and the social distancing required to slow the spread, forced schools to close, leaving parents to care for their kids at home for an uncertain amount of time whether they want to or not.  Are you one of these moms?  I know that you’re probably feeling fear from both the viral threat and for homeschooling your child for the first time.  Trust me though, as a homeschooling parent of fours years, I know you can do this!  Here’s my 5 tips on how to stay sane homeschooling amid the Coronavirus Pandemic.  This homeschooling mom encouragement will boost both your immunity and self confidence! 

Before you read my tips or watch me talk about them in the video below, you may want to get my free stress-relieving acupressure guide which will help both you and your child with this transition!  These six acupressure points not only relieve tension and stress, but will help you all sleep better at night which in turn will keep your immunity strong!

5 Tips for Dealing With Your Fears – Homeschooling Mom Encouragement Amid the Coronavirus Pandemic

Focus On Self-care and Wellness as a New Homeschool Mom

You’re going to have more time, so it’s best to place your energy where it counts the most! Self-care should be your main focus and will help you better serve your family, as well as bolster your body from infection.

This virus, as is the case with other viruses, is opportunistic. It can only infect you if you are weak. Support your health and your family’s by:

• Prioritizing better sleep – It’s still a good idea to have an early bedtime. But now that you’re homeschooling, let the family sleep in!
• Establishing a relaxed schedule – There’s no need to rush your transitions, which can create stress and diminish immunity.
• Creating alone time – Being home with your kids can be intense. Make sure you still have some alone time, even if it means giving your child a screen to entertain them. Your emotional health is very important right now.
• Adopting a home yoga practice – Yoga can support your health on all levels. Try this yoga class video that will help you relieve tension as you wake in the morning and help you start the day with ease!
• Supplementing vitamins and minerals – You should be getting healthy doses of Vitamin A, Vitamin C, and Vitamin D in your diet (and ideally Vitamin D from the sun), but chances are you won’t be getting enough from your food, even if you’re eating whole, organic foods. Find some supplements you like, or try my recommendations here.
• Feeding your gut beneficial bacteria – Gut health is the basis of your immunity. Read about it’s importance, how it’s damaged and how it’s supported here. Basically, you’ll want to be eating more fermented foods and supplementing with probiotics, but it’s also important to avoid stress, sugar, and pharmaceutical drugs which all diminish your gut health!

This wellness kit comes with the vitamins I use as well as digestive enzymes, probiotics, tension-relieving lotion, and mood enhancing essential oils that will support everyone’s body, mood, and mental focus!

Tend To Your Home and Family as you Homeschool

I know it’s hard to stay home, especially this time of year! It was easy in Winter when the energy was low and was a natural time to rest and reflect. But in Spring, it’s natural to be more active and energetic. You will simply have to channel that energy into tending your family and your home.

Here’s some ideas:

• Make all of your meals – Avoid processed food and start making healthy meals with whole foods, if you’re not doing so already. Ask your kids to help you so you get support and they can learn important life skills. Not sure how to get your kids to eat whole foods? Check out my article Practical Dietary Advice for Happy and Healthy Kids.
• Establish a green cleaning routine – Switch out your toxic household products and clean with natural, essential oil based cleansers instead. Have complete control over the ingredients by using DIY recipes. (We’ll focus on Green Cleaning in April – in the meantime ask me if you need any suggestions or recipes).
• Organize your pantries
• Clean out your refrigerators
• Wash your walls & windows
• Clean your oven
• Work in your garden or establish one
• Hike in open, outside places with your family since fresh air and sunshine are important for general health

Notice that most of these suggestions circle back to self-care?

Educate Yourself As You Educate Your Child

If you’ve never homeschooled your child, it’s the perfect time to learn how! Believe me, you can do this. Just remember not to get caught in a common new homeschool mom trap of trying to re-create the school environment at home.

Your relationship is much different than the one your kids had with their teacher. They have your love. Be lighthearted in your approach, relax and trust that they are learning, even when you’re doing fun stuff like cooking and cleaning together!

There are tons of homeschool resources that you can Google. For online courses, I suggest looking into Outschool.com. For math, we love Prodigygame.com and also use Singapore Math workbooks. We do science kits from melscience.com. The rest is very personal for my family. My son reads alone for a portion of the day, but we also read to him classical child history books and fun fiction. For writing, he does copy work from the novels he’s reading or he journals.

You will need to figure out what works for your family. This is part of the learning process and it can be a really fun discovery! Or see if you can just follow the same curriculum your school was using if your child does well with it.

This can also be a great time for YOU to learn new skills that you can be refining while your kids are doing their studies. Take online classes yourself. Maybe you can explore ways to earn income online. I love working from home! I can still explore my passion of connecting families with natural health resources and helping them be healers in their own home. It’s possible for me to do this while staying home with my son and contributing to my family’s income. If you want to learn more about my business and becoming one of my partners, read on here.

Change Your Mindset – Embrace Being a Homeschool Mom!

Again, you can do this! Homeschool moms need more encouragement in the beginning. Much of your confidence is going to come with time as you see your family thrive with more relaxed learning and lifestyle habits. But it’s also extremely important that you change your attitude and mindset too.

Remember what you’re trying to create for your family. If you remain reluctant to homeschool and complain all the time to your friends, then this will be a miserable experience for you. One of the many positive aspects of social distancing with the Coronavirus pandemic is that you can heal your relationship with your family as you spend time together.

My son was in public school until halfway through Kindergarten when he begged to be pulled out. I was already aware that he was having emotional problems and would do anything to protect him. The dynamic was completely different when we started hanging out with homeschool families vs. when I would hang out with the public school moms.

The biggest difference I’ve noticed in our homeschool groups: we, parents, love hanging out with our kids. We don’t complain about our kids. We understand that this is a privilege to teach them and shape their lives based on family love & values. My love for my son is what fuels my confidence. Each day he grows I feel validated that we’re making the right choice for him. It’s that positive mindset shift that makes our homeschool journey a success.

Adopt A Gratitude Practice – Everything Has a Silver Lining

Adopting a gratitude practice with also help you with the mindset shift I suggest above. Everyday upon waking, I recommend sitting up in bed and thinking about the things you’re grateful for in your life. Be grateful for everything and everyone who supports you. You can do this meditation too anytime you’re feeling that you’re caught in negativity or fear.

Try not to get caught up in the fear of the Coronavirus pandemic. If you’re taking necessary distancing precautions and boosting your health with the guidelines I shared above, chances are you will remain healthy or will recover quickly. I also hope that this confidence in taking care of yourself and family spills over into your role as a homeschooling mom. Wellness practices and homeschooling are complementary skills!

If you enjoyed this post, share this homeschooling mom encouragement with your friends! And let me know if you have any questions in the comments below. Stay well!

In this video I’m going to teach you a quick and easy pranayama or breathing practice that you can do in the morning before or after yoga and meditation or even by itself.  It’s called the 9 Clearing Cycles and it’s an ancient Tibetan practice that help wake up your body, increase your vitality and improve your concentration skills.

This is the second post in a series of my personal morning rituals that I’m sharing with you. If you want to live a positive, intentional life, then starting your mornings with ritual is a where you should begin! Last week I shared a morning yoga practice for stiffness that you can do with this breathing practice. 

Though I love doing this pranayama practice in the morning, it’s fine to do it anytime of the day. In addition to combining it with yoga and meditation, it can be part of your other self-care rituals like acupressure massage.  I have a FREE self-acupressure guide that you can download below which will help keep you relieve tension and manage stress. You’ll love it!

Morning Pranayama: Nine Clearing Breaths

In the morning, most of us want to build energy, but it’s important to make space in the body and mind first.  The 9 clearing cycles is a nostril breathing practice that was introduced to me by my teacher Sarah Powers over a decade ago. 

These Nine Clearing Breaths help to clear the energy channels of the body as well as the “poisons” of the mind which impede energy flow and stall our development.  This practice always helps me start the day with receptive awareness which is necessary to keep a positive, open mind, and attract good things. 

Try it! I know you’ll experience the same as well if this becomes part of your morning practice.

Clearing the Nadis and Energy Channels

In this practice, we’re going to be working with the breath moving through the left and right nostrils.  These relate to the Ida and Pingala nadis or energy channels of the body, that circulate Prana, Qi, also known as our “life force” that is connected with the breath. 

These channels help balance yin/yang, left/right, female/male energy, and certain habitual tendencies related to these energies. They serpentine around the Sushumna, the central channel, which contains the chakras or energy wheels. 

You’re purifying these three channels as well as the chakras in this breathing practice.  It also incorporates quick exhalations from the belly which awakens our main power center, Manipura, the 3rd chakra.  This is where you’ll experience a burst of energy.

How to do the Nine Clearing Cycles

Come into a comfortable seated position and make sure your spine is long and lifted.

We’re going to use our right hand to control the breathing for this whole practice. Cross the pinky finger over the ring finger as you’re looking at the palm. Place the ring finger to the left nostril, the thumb to the right nostril. The other two fingers rest at the third eye, in between the eyebrows.

Pre-Clearing the Nadis

First we’re going to prepare the channels by doing a pre-clearing.

1. You can open your airways with essential oils like Peppermint or the Breathe Blend.
2. Then close the right nostril and take five deep breaths through the left nostril.  See if the inhalation and exhalation can be about 5 seconds in length. The left nostril relates to Ida nadi, yin, and one’s feminine nature.  The poison of the mind associated with it is attachment or greed.
3. Then close the left nostril and take five slow breaths through the right nostril.  This relates to Pingala nadi, our yang, masculine nature. The poison related to this nadi is anger.

Nine Clearing Cycles

Now we’ll do the Nine Clearing Cycles working with the Ida first (left nostril), then Pingala (right nostril), and then through both nostrils.  there’s three cycles for each nadi which equals nine.

Each cycle consists of four parts (see video above for demonstration):

1. Inhale through the nostril for ~ 5 seconds.
2. Exhale through the nostril for ~ 5 seconds.
3. Inhale through the nostril for ~ 5 seconds.
4. Exhale quickly through the nostril and with the belly pressing in toward the spine (not so hard that it’s like your blowing your nose).

Let’s start with opening the ida, the left nostril.  Imagine that you’re letting go of your attachments and greed.  This can be the way you’re physically holding on to material items, or old patterns and beliefs.   

With the pingala, the right nostril, you’re letting go of any anger, hatred or aggression in your life.  

Now bring the hand down and do the cycles through both open nostrils, imagining that you’re letting go of any delusion, misunderstanding how life is working around you.

After the nine clearing rounds, inhale and hold the breath in for 10 seconds.  Exhale slowly and hold the breath out for 5-10 seconds. Finish with three slow, even, deep breaths.

I hope you feel more clear, awake, and maybe even more powerful after doing this morning pranayama practice! Please let me know in the comments if this is something you’d like to add to your morning ritual!

This Winter Solstice meditation is a guided, relaxing mindfulness practice that will help you rest in the Winter darkness and renew your being with light on all levels. It’s also an opportunity to let go of what is no longer serving you, allowing space for focused New Year intention, and a rebirth of ideas to achieve your life goals.

Meditation Preparation

To set up, you’ll want to find a place that is dark and quiet.  You may want to light a candle to represent the light inside of you, that creative spark that we’ll be stoking.

Essential oils can help calm your mind and create more focus.  For this meditation I’m using Frankincense and Lemongrass.  Frankincense helps lessen depressed and anxious feelings which tend to be more pronounced this time of year, prompted by the darkness.  Lemongrass helps to clear negativity and uplift your mood.  You can place 1 drop of each in your hands with a dollop of carrier oil and anoint your temples, heart space, and soles of the feet.

Have a pen and paper or a journal nearby where you can write down any insight that comes as we sit.

Also, you can briefly use the acupressure points in my free self-acupressure guide to help you relax. As you release tension, you’ll be better able to focus on the meditation process. You can download the guide below.

Winter Solstice Meditation Instruction

Center Your Attention

Come into a comfortable seated position on the floor or on a chair.  If you’re using a chair, make sure your feet are fully planted on the ground.

Closing your eyes, take several deep breaths, consciously focusing your mind on the present moment.

Exhale out through the mouth to let go of physical tension.  Once you’re feeling settled, allow the mouth to stay closed.

Center your attention by following the movement of the breath. Inhale through the nose. Feel the breath moving through the trachea, filling the lungs, and feel the diaphragm pressing down toward the pelvis, grounding you.  Stay energetically grounded as you exhale and feel the breath moving up and out through the nose.  Watch the ebb and flow of the breath.

Now see if you can make each part of the breath deeper, and longer.  Lengthen the spaces in between breaths, noticing any emotions that come up in the stillness.  It’s common to feel fear when empty, the same feeling that many people have in Winter.

We are microcosms of nature and energetic beings animated by breath.  Consider this, each breath is keeping you alive.  We need both the inhalation AND the exhalation, the life giving breath and the clearing release which creates more space for the next breath.

What Can You Release in Order to Create?

Now as you continue to breath deeply, let’s see how we can relate to the other aspects of ourselves.  What can we let go of?  What can we let rest in the darkness or even die away in order to make space for something more new, more healthy, or even more exciting?

Feel the full volume of the body pulsing with breath.  Feel it’s fullness, emptiness, and the flow in between.  Consider the health of your body and as you ask this question, see what comes up in this space:

“What habits can I let go of that will help my body be more healthy and vibrant?”

Sense the answer in your body.

Now connect in with your heart, your capacity to love and relate to others.  Some relationships served a purpose in the past, but are no longer helpful. Ask yourself the following, or change the wording to fit what you would like to create in your heart instead:

“What relationships can I let go of in order to feel more emotionally spacious and loving.” 

Watch the movement of the mind…

The mind can be the most challenging to shift. Many people are wired for self-criticism and negativity that their belief systems are very limited. Once your open to changing your beliefs, you have the greatest potential to create more happiness in your life. Ask yourself:

“What habits or beliefs can I let go of, can I let die, in order to experience more clarity of mind?”

Give yourself some time to let any thoughts bubble to the surface in answer to this question.

Letting go of the previous attachments in the body, heart, and mind may get you closer to spiritual connection. To explore further, you can ask yourself:

“What can I let go of to experience a deeper sense of myself, to connect with spirit”

Feel into your wholeness.  Notice the warmth inside you, imagining a spark of hope in the heart that grows to a flame, and then to beams of light radiating out of your body in every direction.

Remember that this light sprung from darkness. We needed to let go and experience a symbolic death to some aspects of our lives in order to rebirth new experiences. We needed to visit the past and make peace with it in order to imagine new possibilities for the future.

Slowly Widen Your Awareness

Return your awareness to the breath moving through the central channel of the body.

Open up your ears to what you hear, notice what you’re tasting, smelling, and feeling against your skin.  Finally, gently open your eyes.

Take some time here to make sure your attention is balanced, inside and out.  Write down anything that came up for you during this meditation.  This is a special time for reflection, but of course this is appropriate to do anytime of the year, not just the Winter Solstice. You can repeat this simple meditation practice whenever you’re feeling stuck and that you need to make a major shift in one layer of your being. When we meditate, we’re tapping into our innate wisdom that’s beyond the mind’s comprehension. It’s this place where we receive the most helpful guidance for living a joyful life.

Did you enjoy this meditation? Do you already meditate? Is it for relaxation or to receive guidance or other motivation? I’d love to know about it in the comments!